Touched by Night's Veil
by ThePadawan
Summary: A nightly visitor to Privet Drive makes the summer almost enjoyable. Who is she and can she be trusted? Even if she can't be trusted, she can surely be loved. Pre-HBP Summer fic. HPOFC
1. Just A Shadow

**Touched by Night's Veil**

**Chapter 1 – _Just a shadow_**

"Boy! Get down here this instant!", came Vernon's voice from downstairs. Harry sighed. He had learned to distinguish between normal-angry and furious Vernon. And right know, he was just out to annoy Harry. He carefully stepped down the stairs.

"Yes, uncle?", he asked. "Petunia tells me you've actually been doing your chores like a nice little freak." Harry ground his teeth. That f-word was nearly as loathsome as the m-word that Malfoy was so very fond of. "Seeing as you've been doing so well, you can repaint the fence in the back garden, starting tomorrow."

_Oh good riddance, that will take weeks!_, Harry thought. But what was the alternative? The blood wards should still be strong enough in the back garden, and at least he could get some fresh air.

"But uncle, that will keep me occupied for the rest of the summer!", he overemphasized, putting on his best "shocked" face.

"Serves you right, and if you're not finished by the end of your vacation, you will keep working next summer!" Vernon stormed off, seemingly satisfied enough by his evil ways. Harry rolled his eyes. His uncle never had been the quickest broom in the shed.

Happily, he marched up the stairs into his room. The nearly rotting cot lay neglected in the near corner. He made his way over to it and stripped to his boxers, his usual nightwear. The cheap and equally old blanket was wrapped around him within seconds. Sleep had never come to Harry easily in Hogwarts, but in Privet Drive, the manual labour tired him out completely, his family's animosity even helpful in this regard. Sleep took him within minutes.

OoOoOoOoOo

She ran through the night, avoiding all street lamps, instead keeping to the flat garage roofs of the surrounding houses. She jumped from one to the other, landing softly as feather, not disturbing a single shingle.

_Not that one...no, those neither..._While most of the residents of Privet Drive were well-fed and healthy, most had chosen to spend their evening with a good bottle of wine or, some of the older ones, the odd bottle of gin. She smacked her lips. Willow was normally not picky, but the tang of alcohol would put anyone right off a good pint of human blood.

So she had to make due with whoever was not smashed off their face on this peaceful Tuesday. _Very peaceful neighbourhood...well who wouldn't be at this amount of_ _spirit_, she reckoned. But it seemed like the excursion to this cul-de-sac would have to end fruitlessly._ No. 6...empty. Probably out drinking. No. 4...oh come on, these ones too?_ She could smell three humans, but on everyone also the bitter aroma of alcohol.

She sniffed the fresh evening breeze. _What's this...whale? That can't be right...probably just a rotund one, then._ Some of her clan would occasionally enjoy a gulp of the more rounded, full-bodied aroma of an obese human, but there had been rumours that the vampires would have to pay for that luxury with an overdose of cholesterol. And if you're immortal, getting stuck with that is not a good idea.

She was running out of ideas. But wait! She breathed in again. _The faintest smell..._ She rounded the corner to the back yard, all the while following the subtle smell of a sober human, even if masked by the stench of moth-balls and sweat. Coming to rest below a first story window, she paused... She could get up there, but probably not without waking somebody in the house.

Looking around, she discovered a strong Sessile Oak, the branches of which hung over nearly to the side of the house. _Perfect. Let's have a quick look at the dinner..._. Smoothly like a night cat, she climbed the tree in three smooth jumps, finally settling on the branch closest to the window. She could definitely smell a human there...weak, but there.

Why was this smell coming from a derelict storage space. _Must be a fluke..._She was starting to turn away when she spotted movement beneath a blanket. A body was twisting and turning in its sleep. With a sharp jerk, the sheet came off the young boy, for now Willow could see him in his fullest, and he sat upright on his cot. Startled and afraid to be noticed, she quickly took a leap back into the crown of the tree, cowering down in the leaves' shadow.

OoOoOoOoOo

Harry woke up with a start, sweaty from this night's nightmares. _The brains, the prophecies, and worst of all...the Veil...when will they ever stop coming?_ Harry dejectedly stood up. It was no use trying to get back to sleep after one of them, he had discovered after a few days. _Might as well get some fresh air in here_, he thought, stepping to the small window at the far end of the room.

Opening it, he welcomed the cold rush of the breeze. He leaned on the window sill to enjoy the quiet of night. His eyes barely adjusted to the darkness, he could barely make out shades outside...and this one was definitely moving.

Seeker instincts showing themselves again, Harry could make out a shadow of ...a person, maybe? No, too small, and too unmoving._ Everybody has to breathe some time, even if you're trying not to be noticed_. "Hello there...did the Order send you? I didn't know I needed a minder even when sleeping.", he asked into the dark spot.

Receiving no answer to the affirmative, he tried a different approach. "Or are you trying to hide there? You're not doing a very good job...have you come to kidnap me? Or save me from this hell hole? It'd be appreciated all the same, you know...". The shadow gave a jerk, but reacted no further. "Well then...we'll leave it at 'just a shadow' then, shall we?"

The shadow moved in a way that Harry interpreted as a nod. It then dropped to the floor and made off into the darkness. _Maybe, the shadow can get me out of here one day..._, Harry fantasised. Until then, he would have to try to sleep again. He closed the window and lay down on top of the still sweat-stained sheet. This would have to do. He closed his eyes and was whisked away into another restless round of all the same, yet again.

OoOoOoOoOo

_Wow...just...wow._ When Willow had sniffed out the weak scent of him, she had no idea he would turn out to be a boy of what, fifteen? Sixteen? No way could he belong to the whales she had smelt in that very house...in fact, his scent had gotten more and more tempting as he had got closer to her.

She was nearly overwhelmed by the intense but delicate flavours she could smell on the wind...Her mouth had actually begun to drool significantly at the scent, making a very undignified sight of the seventeen year old. She would have immediately pounced him, given half a chance, but somehow, another part of her was enjoying a very different kind of feeling.

Seeing this boy without a shirt, toned from labour, had diminished her blood lust in favour of more carnal desires. It had taken a great amount of restraint to stay semi-hidden in the tree, and not make her way over to the waiting and honestly delicious-looking prey. But the words he said had startled her...what Order? Was he under protection from the church?

That would spell a great deal of trouble...while crucifixes weren't deadly, being surrounded by them clearly was not something any vampire would look forward to. _But then, why would he look forward to being kidnapped, as he put it?_ Questions were on the forefront of her mind, her hunger near forgotten. Hunting would have to wait...this boy had peaked her interest in many colourful ways. She vowed to come back the next day.

To herself, she admitted that it might have to do with his shirtlessness and toned chest, but obviously, the mystery surrounding the boy was enough to keep her coming back for more.

**A/N: I plan to continue this into some kind of length, though for the moment, this story will only cover the summer before Harry's sixth year.**


	2. Enter Stage Right

**Chapter 2 – _Enter stage right_**

Working on the back yard fence was both a blessing and a curse for Harry. Each freshly painted picket left him with a feeling of satisfaction, but at the same time, he worked in close proximity of the oak tree that had become a beacon of hope for him.

He kept on glancing into its crown, where the shadow had quietly sat. It was empty every single time. _Apparently, being watched by the Order is enough by day_, Harry snorted.

He tried to spot his Order watchers, but both neighbours of Nr. 4 where very fond of shrubbery, creating nice hiding spots for them. _There's gotta be a way of finding them_, he thought. Maybe his possible shadowy saviour would know a way...but that would have to wait until evening. He went back to the pickets. _Up...down...long strokes...all in the wrists...and don't forget to breathe..._

OoOoOoOoOo

Evening couldn't come quick enough for Harry. With so many questions on his mind, he didn't even try to fall asleep, and instead chose to stay awake and wait at the closed window.

_When did I wake up last night? Damn, I could really use a clock in here._

He paced. Five steps to the door, five steps back. The long side of the room was not enough to contain his impatience.

He opened the window. Maybe he could hear or see the figure arrive...but then, he hadn't noticed the night before.

Harry sharpened his senses. His breathing became shallow, listening out for any hint of a sound.

The soft rustling of leaves was the only sound reverberating through the dusk. The clouds had cleared up again, letting the moon shine through in her three-quarter full glory.

_There...steps...or are they?_ The grass moved so slightly, Harry would have thought it was only a strolling cat, but the human-size shadow traversing the garden convinced him otherwise.

With three practised footholds, it climbed the tree and sat itself in its usual place, in the middle of the crown, a polite distance away from the window at which Harry stood.

"Hello again...", he said. The shadow gave a slight movement to show it had heard and understood him.

"Do you have to stay that far away? This branch looks rather stable, and it is quite impolite, you know."

He pointed towards the thick branch linking them. He saw the shadow move towards the branch, carefully weighing its steps.

As it approached, he could make out more of the shape. Clad in a widely-cut black cape, the body of a teenage girl showed itself. When she looked down to make sure her feet were stepping safely, he could see long tresses of red hair curtain before her face. Behind it was a pale face with full lips and a set of small and sharp, red eyes.

He flinched back. _Red eyes...the cape..._The words of Professor Lupin came back to him. The cape being obvious, but also a Muggle favourite costume, the red eyes sealed the deal. She must be a vampire. _But they hunt in small groups...why is she here alone?_

She had stopped approaching, seeing his reaction, carefully perched on the branch, ready for retreat.

Harry tried to relax. He raised his hands in a calming manner, and stepped back to the window. _Remember the rule...they can't enter your house unless you invite them in._ "I'm sorry...I got scared. Relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

Her pose softened. She took a last careful step towards him, and the sat down on the branch, smoothing out her long skirts beneath her. They were incredibly impractical for hunting, but that wasn't why she was here tonight...after all, one could only ever leave one first impression.

She faced him. "Good evening." Her voice was soft, but cut through the nightly silence. "I am Willow. What's your name?"

Harry's eyebrows rose. _If she doesn't recognize me, then..._ "You must be muggle, then...for you, then, I'm Harry. Just Harry."

She was confused. Muggle? Perhaps it was that church propaganda. "I am a child of the night, if that's what you mean. I am not, however in alliance with the devil, like the Church would have you believe."

She had succeeded as well. Harry looked at her quizzically. "No I meant that you were not...magical before being turned. I am a wizard, and we don't exactly listen to the Church any more after they wanted to see the lot of us burn." He grinned.

Her eyes bulged. "Magic! Like, you can turn people into toads and stuff? Wow!" Her giddiness was uncharacteristic, but that was news to her. "I mean, I have powers like super strength, and I weigh next to nothing...", she demonstrated by lifting herself up only the index finger of her right hand, "...but actual real magic...wow."

"Yeah, but I'm under age, so I can't really show you any of that, the Ministry of Magic would have my head. And probably yours too, if they found you, even if they have their hands full with Voldemort at the moment", he apologized.

She perked up. "You have your own ministry? Man, your world sounds complicated. But if they know about vampires, I should probably know about them...and what's a voldemort?"

_So she is not in alliance with the snake, then..._He was still walking on thin ice, so he came out with his worries. "Before I explain about that...why are you here? If you're here for my blood, you know I won't let you into the house."

She looked down, and would have blushed if her blood knew how to flow again. "I was here for that last night, but today, I have already fed..." She licked her lips, showing her sharp glistening fangs in the moonlight. "I understand that you won't let me in...maybe soon, you can learn to trust me. If I'm well-fed, I might even be good company."

He nodded. _Maybe soon, but not tonight. _He grabbed his pillow from his resting place and threw it towards her. She deftly caught it out of the air, looking quizzically at him. "Make yourself comfortable, this is going to take a while...". She smiled. "I've told you, I'm very light. I'm quite comfy as I am, but thanks anyway." Instead of sitting on the pillow like he had proposed, she instead clutched it to her chest like an oversized teddy bear, basking in his scent that emanated from it.

And so he explained about the magical world...from his first encounter with Hagrid, to his past adventures in Hogwarts, about his friends and family, They shared a good laugh when they realized that they both had drawn the conclusion that there must be whale somewhere in Dudley's ancestry.

He continued about the Order, and the death of his godfather. She respectfully stayed silent through the obvious ordeal for him.

"So these are the people who you thought I was with? Are they watching you right now?" She turned around nervously, sniffing the air for some sign of danger.

"I don't know if they do at night... I can't see anyone around here.." He watched her as she inhaled. "Can you..find humans by smell?" She nodded distractedly. "I can...and there is something there, but it's really hard to tell. As soon as I think I found someone, its completely gone."

"They must be masking their smell, to not attract attention.", Harry said. _Standard auror work for camouflage_.

She nodded, turning back to face him. "I can kind of understand now why you said you wanted to be kidnapped...they never leave you alone, do they?" He sighed. "Yeah, and this place has never been home to me...my 'family' would throw me out without a second look. Do you have any family?"

She shook her head. "I wouldn't know...when I was turned a few years back, I forgot all of them. It's a protection mechanism. You are supposed to only belong to your sire...but he disappeared on me too. I guess I'm a freelancer."

_A few years back, she said?_ "Just exactly how old are you then? You don't look a day above 16!". She smiled. "Tststs, you never ask her lady her age. But to be fair, we Children stop ageing after being turned, so fair question. I was turned about three years back. And if you say I look like 16, that would make me 19 in your years, but I guess my real age is...3? This is rather complicated, isn't it? My turn! How old are you, then?"

He blinked the confusion away. "I guess so..anyway, I turn fifteen in a few days...I think. The 31st of July, anyway."

"Well then, I'll have to bring you a present, hmm?" She put her finger up to her chin, deep in thoughts.

"I'll think of something, Harry."

The moon was lowering dangerously. Willow looked around her, and jumped up gracefully. "It seems I have to give you a hurried goodbye, though, until you like well-done Willow steak.". She lobbed his pillow back to him. "See you tomorrow night?", she asked shyly.

Harry nodded. "Tomorrow night. I'll keep a look out for the watchers for you."

She nodded, raising the collar of her cape as a protection for her delicate neck. "Sweet dreams, then, Harry.", and dropped to the grass, jumping across the lawn in few, deliberate strides.

Harry clung to the pillow. _If this is the alternatives to the nightmares, I might just stand here every night. _Willow had shown herself as not a follower of Voldemort. From what he had read before the summer, the major clans had allied herself with him. But being a freelancer apparently had its advantages. _If she's telling the truth, she might be a powerful ally_, he realized. He yawned. Whatever the implications, it would have to wait until the next morning. Lying down on the cot, he thought back on the evening's conversation. _Willow...in the oak tree._ Thinking back on it, it was rather humorous. Falling asleep with a smile on his face helped his nightmares immensely; or maybe it was just the hope of having found a friend; one that didn't have any preconceptions of him, and would treat him as who he was. Harry. Just Harry.

**A/N: I have to admit that I took the lightness of Willow's body from Bakemonogatari's heroine Senjougahara. It does however, fit her supernaturalness rather well, I find.**


	3. Metamorphosis

**Chapter 3 – _Metamorphosis_**

They had found a good rhythm. Sometimes he would be let off from chores early, and sometimes she would be there on the branch, waiting for him. They would talk about their pasts, Willow on a disadvantage due to only being three in vampire years, but retold many a story about an interesting hunt.

They had discovered that the Order rarely positioned watchers at night, and once Willow could sniff out Mudungus Fletcher, passed out near a bottle of whiskey in the shrubberies. The smell of alcohol had been too strong even for the masking spell, making her cringe and wishing it had held, instead.

In the few nights nearing his birthday, Willow had fraught her brain for a good present, and some time in, her vampire instincts had taken hold instead.

While male vampires were infused with the romantic Casanova-like qualities that muggle fiction writers were so fond of, that was purely due to males being of a somewhat more primal nature.

Those instincts did not completely go unnoticed by females, but stayed somewhat in the background.

In what Willow considered the courting phase, her instinct hat chosen to present Harry with a single red rose.

Cheesy enough to give him a signal. She had often imagined how the evening would turn out, him hopefully inviting her in to spend the night...

Again, that non-blush. Oh how hard it was to be both undead and hormonal.

She had "freed" a single rose from a horticulturist neighbour, picking out the most elegant she could find. Without any qualms of consciousness; she could hardly walk into a florist during the day. _Someday, somewhere, someone's going to open a 24-hour florist. And then, I'm going up to them and shake their hand for not discriminating against the vampire customers._

Her mind was hyperactive from nervousness, running off track like an overfull mine cart.

She was at the branch way more early than usual, making sure to be there some time before Harry to calm down enough to string together whole sentences.

He turned up after a short while, dressed as usual in his cousin's cast-offs, setting a sharp contrast to her most elegant blouse, corset and skirt she could find. The white blouse was a rare treat for her (and of course, him).

When she had started stealing together her attire, she had been mostly looking out for stealthy, practical clothes. But maybe due to pre-turn habits of hers – how would she know, anyway – she had picked up on the way some clothes that one could use to "dress to impress".

His jaw was hanging somewhat more loosely, seeing her dressed up for a grand occasion, with one hand behind her back. "What's the big occasion? Are we going to the opera?", he asked cheekily.

She shook her head, sending her hair swaying around slowly. "Even better. It's your birthday, silly. Or, rather, it will be."

She looked towards the moon, again wishing she had a wristwatch; but then, the moon was a better and more safe indicator of dawn.  
"Only a few minutes now", she said. "Buuuuut, you won't get your present before then.", she teased.

He smiled. "Finally! I've been looking forward to that present for ages...".

They chatted idly for a few minutes, both impatient, but Willow insisted in waiting. "Since I know that there is actual magic, I fear that the bad luck you might get according to the superstition might actually exist."

When she looked to the moon for the what seemed liked twentieth time, she whispered: "Only a few seconds now..."

They both looked into each other's eyes, counting down in their head to some small number.

But before they could realise the futility of what they were doing, Harry's eyes widened and then closed suddenly, a blood-curdling scream coming from his mouth. He fell to the floor in a heap, and rolled himself into a ball, clutching his hands to his head.

Willow panicked. The present all but forgotten, she let it fall to the ground, and jumped the gab to the window. She yelled: "Harry! Oh Harry, say something!"

His scar had started to bleed profusely. His voice raw from screaming, he brought out a sore whisper: "Willow...get...Order...Voldemort..."

She didn't hesitate. In this state, there was no way of telling what had happened to him. She landed on the grass, and after a quick dash, had made her way to the shrubberies that his minders were so fond of.

_Oh please, let there be someone, please!_, her mind reeled. "Help! Anyone? Harry is badly injured and needs help from the Order! Oh god, please someone, help", she screamed.

A bush to her left rustled. Shimmering into existence came a young woman with spiky pink hair, tapping herself on the head with her wand. "I'm Tonks, his watcher for the night. What's wrong with him?", she asked hurriedly towards the caped creature before her.

"No time for politeness", Willow replied and without second thought, jumped towards her in one large step and grabbed her around the arm. Surprised by the girl's strength, Tonks stifled a yelp as she was dragged up a story onto the roof and shoved into Harry's room.

"Do something!", Willow yelled, looking over Harry's state. He was still curled up in the foetal position, now softly whimpering, his breathing shallow and short. His head was lying in a small puddle of his own blood.

Realizing the urgency of the situation, Tonks went into full-automatic first aid mode, casting several diagnostic charms in quick succession. He was barely conscious, and it was a miracle he was even still alive. Tonks tried to put him in a medical stasis, but that had no effect at all. _If it was an attack through his scar, then Voldemort is probably blocking healing magic through it._, Tonks thought. She was running out of ideas, and quickly. She said as much to Willow. "Look, whoever you are...I can't help him any more, and he's fading fast...".

Willow was feeling faint. Without any chance of healing, he was going to surely die. She tried a last resort. "Invite me in." she asked of Tonks.

"What?", she would reply. Taking a closer look, she did the mental math. "You're a vampire!". She drew her wand.

"Look, Tonks, was it? If Harry trusted me, so should you. I might be the only chance he has left", she begged.

Tonks looked between Willow and Harry. His mouth was hanging open in a silent scream.

"Very well. Welcome in this home, Willow."

Without hesitation, she swooped in, her cape billowing in the cool air.

She knelt over him, looking into his eyes. What she saw there was only the faraway stare of near-death.

Being separated from her sire, she had no idea of the extent of her powers, but her instinct screamed at her internally.

"There is a way", she said towards Tonks, not taking her eyes off of Harry's.

"You won't like it, though...", she whispered.

When Tonks narrowed her eyes, Willow begged her: "Please...for Harry's sake. You Order people never looked out for him, never cared for him...I know better how to care for him now..."

Tonks' eyes widened. Just how much had Harry kept from her, but told this girl? What kind of relationship did the two have? Seeing the dire situation, and how concerned the girl was, she conceded.

"Do it."

She nodded, turning over Harry on his back. She let her tongue run over her fangs, checking for the sharpness she always needed to feel. It was there.

She knelt over his body, leaning over to position her face on his neck.

When hunting humans, drawing their blood was usually a very forceful and harsh act.

What Willow's vampire self had in mind, was the exact opposite. Giving up her blood to heal Harry was a very sensual act. When she pierced his aorta, there was no desire to drink, only of sacrifice.

Slowly but surely, Willow gave up part of her life essence for him. Her blood intermingling with this caused an immediate reaction with him. He started taking deep breaths, and at once, opened his eyes. Once he had realized what situation he was in, he relaxed and basked in the feeling of rejuvenation.

Having no experience of what she was doing, Willow continued.

Harry's consciousness was overwhelmed. This feeling was so indescribable. Leaning into her, he felt his insides yearn for more.

While Willow was giving up more and more of herself, Harry was becoming more and more of her. He felt his fangs grow and sharpen.

His mind clouded over, he listened to whatever his subconscious said. And that was just one word.

_Bite._

So that is what he did. With such a soft neck in front of him, he closed the circle between them.

Willow's brain took a blank. The joy of giving up her blood for someone else was gorgeous, but this...connection was pushing her over the edge. She leaned her body closer to his, one hand reaching into his hair.

He responded in kind, drawing her closer by the small of her back.

That only seemed to strengthen the connection. After a few minutes of unconsciously wandering hands, Tonks definitely felt like she was intruding on a very intimate act, and looked away blushing.

Completely exhausted, Willow was the first to withdraw, though still clinging on to Harry. When he removed his fangs, too, they both were flushed, their physical reactions obvious to the onlooking Tonks.

"Wow Harry, if that's how you can make a girl feel, then I might want a go too", she joked.

While he blushed, Willow bared her fangs at Tonks, hissing protectively. She did get up, however and sat beside Harry, holding his hand. He had a stupid grin stuck on his face, which showed an interesting development.

"Hey Harry, where have your fangs gone?", asked Tonks. He touched his tongue to them and discovered, that they were, indeed, human fangs and not vampiric.

"That's strange...they're just...not there any more". He took a closer look at Willow. She was looking strangely...flushed? "Willow, come here for a second." He touched her cheek; it was warm to the touch.

He looked into her eyes, who had turned a curious speckled mixture of brown and...striking green. "Willow, do you realize what this means?" She looked into his eyes and started catching on.

"So before I was turned, my eyes must have been...brown?" She look at his eyes, the exact opposite pattern of hers, brown speckles in his green.

Tonks was getting impatient. "What are you two on about?".

Harry beckoned her closer. "Just look! By sharing our blood, we somehow shared the vampirism too!"

He pointed out their fangless state, their shared eye colour and that they were both still sporting a healthy flush to their faces.

Tonks' jaw was nearing the hardwood floor. _They discovered a ...cure for vampirism, just like that?_

"I would still be careful, Harry...be mindful of what could happen once you two meet daylight."

Harry's giddiness subsided. "Just to be safe, don't go out tomorrow until I've come by with some burn salve...you can never be too sure." He nodded. Better to be safe than sorry.

"But Tonks...", he said quietly, "...you won't mention this to the Order, will you? At least...for a while. Let us have some peace."

She looked at the two, still holding onto each other for dear life. Tonks sighed. "Just because I've been young once, too...you get three days to find out what's going on with the two of you." Willow smiled. "Thank you." She gave the older woman an appreciative nod.

Now that she looked mostly human, that left a good impression on Tonks.

"For the moment, this will have to do, guys.", she said, conjuring a second cot next to Harry's. "I was never any good at conjuring wood.", she admitted. "You will just have to hide it tomorrow, if it hasn't disappeared by then."

Harry had to ask for another favour. "Tonks...could we maybe have a curtain? I don't know what will happen if sunlight comes in here...", he said, looking over at the window through which the moon still shone.

Impressed by his foresight, Tonks complied. "If anything else comes up, it will have to wait until dawn. I'll come by to check up on you then."

They both nodded. The night hours had progressed quickly, and they were both dead tired from their blood transfer – no pun intended.

Tonks decided the stealthiest thing would be to disappear the way she had come in – through the garden window. Landing on the grass with a slight stumble, cursing on the sharp impact, she headed towards the front of the house. However, a red something caught her attention. Reaching down, she picked up the single forlorn rose. Looking a last time towards Harry's bedroom window, she smiled to herself. She smelled the flower and set it down again. Whoever of the two this was for, they had given each other something even better.

Back upstairs, the pair were facing another kind of trouble. When they had gone to their respective beds, facing towards each other, they had still felt a heart-wrenching separation between them. After some red-faced experimentation, they had gotten comfortable spooned together.

While thoughts of the future and each other were on the fronts of their minds, they both were too tired to heed them any thought, and felt into a deep slumber like that.

**A/N: Wow, so much sexual tension in so little words. Well at least, I can finally write Willow blushing into this piece. It's been on the tip of my feather for a while now.**


	4. In Daylight

**Chapter 4 –** _**In Daylight**_

Without sunlight streaming in through the window frame, the day started slowly for the dynamic duo.  
For Harry, it was an unusual beginning to the day's proceedings: Contrary to what Rita Skeeter liked to claim in her libellous articles, he hadn't made a habit out of waking up lying in bed next to beautiful teenage girls.

Luckily, in this instance, he woke up before his companion, and could extract himself from a potentially embarrassing situation by shuffling away from Willow. In the warm light of the morning, he could make out the shapely form of the girl. Still clad in last night's clothes, her hair had become a tousled mess on her head instead of its usual straight shape. Even though she was turned away from him, Harry could observe the slow rise and fall of her shoulders.

"How long has it been since she got a whole night's sleep?", he mused with a smile. Willow's thoughts seemingly were quite similar, as she snuggled against the duvet. Still asleep, she turned to lie on her back. As her arm came around, Harry narrowly avoided getting smacked in the head. Clearly, this vampire was not a morning person.

To avoid another possibly violent accident, Harry decided to get up and go to the bathroom. Carefully leaning into the hallway, he gladly noticed that none of the Dursleys were in hearing range, and tiptoed across the hall. Closing the door behind him, he looked into the mirror above the sink. His nightly activities had left dark rings below his eyes that gave him a rather haggard appearance. After a quick shower, he stepped back into the spare bedroom.

In the dim light, he noticed Willow had chosen his absence to diagonally stretch out on the bedding and kicking off the duvet. "Good...morning?" Her eyes were open, but her slurred speech suggested she wasn't fully awake yet. As she scanned the room, she slowly sat up, curling her legs underneath herself.

"Were you gone? I woke up and you weren't… there any more.", she nodded towards the bed they had shared. She turned towards the window. "You were asleep and I didn't want to wake you up. You seemed like you needed it, so I took a quick shower.", Harry responded, running a hand through his still-wet hair. "I woke up as soon as you left", Willow stated. "It seems we can't really be separated right now, like the whole… bed situation, right?"She blushed, and immediately reached with one hand up to her cheek, then stared at it in wonderment. "I haven't felt this … well technically, alive, I guess, in ages."

Harry stepped closer to both her and the window, and carefully asked "Alive enough to try sunlight?". He reached for the curtains. Willow froze in place. "Give me a second." She stood up slowly, and walked over to him barefooted. When she reached him, she carefully positioned her body behind Harry's and snaked her arms around him. He tensed, but could feel her body relax behind him. She leaned her head against his shoulders. "I'm ready if you are", she whispered.  
He nodded and slowly moved the curtain aside.

The sunlight filtered through the low-hanging clouds and reached the couple standing in its path. Harry cringed at the sudden brightness. Willow loosened her grip on him and moved her arms towards the light. "It feels warm… and tingly". She moved to stand beside Harry and closed her eyes, soaking in the light on her face. "Yeah…, maybe a bit too tingly", Harry said, noticing his own skin starting to warm uncomfortably. "Let's not overdo it until we know if this is dangerous for you". She sighed and moved away from the window. "You're right, of course. I just didn't realize how much I missed it."  
They fell silent, both lost in thought about what the night might have brought both of them.

Their reverie was interrupted by a knock at the door and a disembodied voice. "Hey kiddos, you decent?", came the unmistakable chirp of Tonks from behind the door frame. "Yeah", chorused the couple. Tonks stepped in and took in the sights around here. Noticing that her conjured cot had disappeared, she cursed her lack of casting prowess. "Sorry about that, I hope you could get some comfortable sleep before it disappeared", she apologized. Willow blushed, looked up at Harry, and quickly averted her gaze towards the ground. "Yeah, I slept comfortably enough, I guess. It was unusual to sleep through the night anyhow."

Tonks perked up. "That's right - how are you handling the whole daylight thing? I've brought the salve if you need it!", she started, rummaging through her seemingly bottomless satchel. "It's fine", Willow responded, "I'm just not used to it any more". Tonks stopped her fruitless search, now elbow deep in her bag. "Alright then, kids. Go clean yourselves up then, we're going for a trip to sort this mess out." Willow nodded and hopped over the wooden floor boards towards the door.  
Harry showed her the way to the bathroom and headed back in to talk to Tonks. "So, do you have any idea what happened? Willow and I are still working by trial-and-error here." Tonks shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I haven't had a chance to ask around yet, and I'm not the kind of person who goes digging around in dusty tomes, that's why I'm taking you to some guys who might know about… occurrences like this" "Dumbledore?" "You'll see when we get there, I can't really tell you right now".

That definitely peaked Harry's curiosity. Tonks reached into her humongous bag again, and this time returned with a full-size grey cloak clasped in her hand. "Here, put this on." As Harry slipped the oversized cloth over his head, she went on. "This is an Auror-issue standard anonymity cloak. Besides the slight Notice-Me-Not charm, it also comes with a face obscuration charm. We should be able to get you around without anyone recognizing you. The only problem is of course that everybody knows you have something to hide." Harry nodded, the hood clasped around his neck and pulled above his forehead.

"I've also brought a non-magical one for ...", she started again, when Willow entered the room. "Ooh, nice threads, Harry", she noted, looking the cloak up and down. Tonks' sentence petered off. "Well this makes things a lot … easier … or wait, more complicated …" She scratched her head. "If you can notice him, that means…". She sighed. "Never mind, just put this on.", Tonks said, handing her a second Anonymity cloak. "I'll guess I'll just show up as myself then", she added, changing hair colors until she settled on a light teal. "Let's mosey."

On the way out, the question why Aunt Petunia had not complained about Harry's visitors resolved itself, judging from the fact that she lay on the kitchen floor, having been stunned by Tonks. "Right ol' bother, she was. You would think that she would stop putting up a fight the second time I came around, but noooo", the chirpy Auror commented on her sorry state. "We'll be long gone by the time she comes to."

Tonks led the way out of the door, walking briskly in front of Harry, who in turn was dragging Willow alongside him. As they reached the pavement, Tonks pulled out her wand and held it out as if conducting an invisible band. "I might be able to side-along apparate one other person, but definitely not both of you, and if you don't know how to apparate yourself, it would probably turn rather ugly", she admitted. "Thus, we are taking …" Her speech was interrupted by a loud bang and a sharp screeching noise. A male voice interrupted her: "Welcome to the Knight Bus, I'm Stan and will be your conductor this fine day. We'll get you anywhere you want as long as it's on land! Adults are eleven sickles, you can get extra toothbrushes for …" Tonks interrupted the annoying voice abruptly. "Three adults to the MoM please, hold the toothbrushes and hot chocolates, we're just here for the trip, mate."

Stan stopped his soliloquy and looked at the her, relaxing his tone. "Ah 'syou again. Cmon, hop in, Miss Auror. Official business again, is it? I don't hope you're too drunk to apparate at this time of the day like that one time when you…" "Thank you very much, Stan!", Tonks interjected again, ushering in Harry and Willow in front of her. "We'll go find some seats now!". Stan scoffed and nodded to the driver. "Alright Ernie, let's get out of here. This place gives me the creeps. Way too squeaky clean."

After a jerky ride, during which Tonks made at least a small effort not to giggle every time Willow was thrown into Harry, which probably wasn't always accidentally, the rag-tag team arrived at the telephone booth that served as the muggle-side entrance to the Ministry of Magic. To Willow's delight and possibly disappointment, the booth resized to fit all three of them comfortable. As Tonks dialed the code and stated their official purpose ("Auror Tonks accompanying two witnesses"), they descended to the atrium. "I've registered you two beforehand as part of an Auror investigation, so you don't have to pass the checkpoint", she told the couple, flashing her badge at the grumpy wizard behind the counter, who was currently busy scanning the wand signature of an impatiently waiting witch.

They were lucky enough to find a mostly empty elevator waiting for them at the other end of the atrium. As they descended towards the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, the two other occupants turned to look at each other, and the one closer to the door pressed a red button on the floor selection panel. The elevator lurched to a sudden halt. "Auror Tonks?", came the voice of the other mystery man. "We think your … companions might be somewhat of interest to us. Could we perhaps convince you … to take a short detour?" Without waiting for an answer, his partner had already changed their target floor. As Tonks realized where they were headed, she gulped. "Erm...of course, we are happy to accommodate the Department of Mysteries wherever we can." "Very well then. You are welcome to follow us if you wish to serve as a guardian for these two."

Their walking order had quickly reversed, and now it was Tonks who was dragging behind the brisk pace of the two DoM officials flanking Harry and Willow. They were quickly being led down a plethora of confusing turns and twists through the innards of the ministry until they finally reached an inconspicuous office door. The first official knocked. "Your special deliveries are here, sir". A voice from the inside answered. "Ah yes, bring them in please." The three entered the office chock-full of books and various magical implements. Some of them Harry recognized from Dumbledore's office, but others seemed baffling to him, and others still gave him a very uncomfortable feeling.

"Good day to you all. I know who you are, but for politeness let me offer you my name. I'm known as Christopher.", the brown-haired man behind the desk said. "You must understand that we generally do away with last names at the DoM for privacy reasons." He looked over at Tonks, then let his gaze linger at the two cloaked figures of Harry and Willow. "You might as well take down your hoods now. This office is harshly warded against implements of deception, so they have become rather useless anyway." The two faced each other, and simultaneously followed his instructions. "Very well then. You might be wondering why we have gathered you two here today."

They nodded. "It's really quite simple. Our job at the Department of Mysteries is not very easy to describe, so let's put it like this: We work on the exceptions. While all the other departments are fixated on their rules and regulations, we fix the problems that occur when rules contradict each other, or various irregularities occur. And you two," he pointed, "are very much irregular.". He unrolled a long parchment scroll on the right hand side of his desk, pointing to the very bottom and showing it to the teens. "This is the Hogwarts enrollment for the next school year. We normally only see the first years on here, and maybe the odd exchange student. However, this is most unusual".

Harry leaned closer and read the very last entry on the list. Below "Jane Martens", a single entry stood out. "Willow". No last name. He looked over at Willow, a smile on his face. "This is great! You'll get to go to school with me!". "Not so fast", interjected Christopher, holding up a finger warningly. "What really worried us was that we recognized that name … from another list". As before, he produced a parchment seemingly out of nowhere. This time, he unrolled the large scroll to a middle section, and pointed at another entry. Again, it simply said "Willow".

"This is the list of magical creatures we have ever detected in the UK. It has been quite some time since we encountered a case of a magical creature attending Hogwarts...". "Remus", Harry whispered. Christopher perked up. "Indeed, Mr. Lupin did fit the criteria back then. In that case, we were aware of his condition before his official enrollment at Hogwarts. But this time, it didn't happen in that order, …". He carried on filing through to the end of the massive scroll. "No it didn't, did it, Harry?". Harry startled, quickly looking up towards Christopher. "How did you …?" "Know your name? It's actually very simple." His finger slid towards the bottom of the list of magical creatures. "Your name is on here as well."


End file.
